Molly Hooper was standing outside the door of an upscale apartment building. She was supposed to be meeting her date there, but a nervous pit in her stomach was keeping her from ringing the buzzer to his apartment. "Get a grip Molly." She scolded herself, pushing the button to let him know she was here. It's not that she was nervous to be alone with him in his apartment. On their last date they'd wound up at her flat and watched a few episodes of Glee. He hadn't even pressured her to do anything she didn't want to.
She knew the nervous sensation was because it was their third date. And the third date always seemed to be her unlucky number. Anytime she began talking to someone new they would would make it to three dates and then they'd end up never going out again. The door buzzed as it unlocked for her and she quickly hurried inside.
"Molly, come in." Jim was waiting in the doorway of his apartment, a warm smile playing across his lips..
"Hi." She smiled, her stomach twisting nervously as she stepped inside his apartment. She immediately felt out of place as she took a look around. "Wow, you must make a lot in IT." She covered her mouth, embarrassment heating up her cheeks. "I'm sorry, I didn't mean to say that."
"I keep myself busy at work." A friendly smile lit up his features, putting her back at ease. "How are you doing?"
"I'm good, thank you." She handed her coat over to him and watched as he hung it up on a coat rack. He was always a gentleman around her, something she hadn't been able to find in men lately. He motioned for her to follow him and once his back was turned she took the opportunity to look around the apartment. It was immaculately clean, everything seemed to be in the perfect place. She wouldn't be surprised if she found out he'd hired an interior decorator to set up his apartment, it was almost too perfect.
"Can I get you a drink?"
Molly followed his gaze to the bar on the other side of his front room and shrugged. "I'll just have whatever you're having." She sat down on his sofa, smoothing out the skirt of her dress once she crossed her legs. Jim opened up a bottle of a caramel colored liquor and poured out three glasses.
"Three glasses?" Molly asked, taking one from him and holding it up to her nose. It smelled sweet and almost woodsy.
"It's scotch." Jim cut in once he saw her puzzled expression. "I have a business associate over right now. But he'll be leaving shortly." His tone made it clear he wasn't going to elaborate any further so she left the subject alone.
She couldn't help but find it a little strange that he had a coworker and a date over at the same time. But then again, maybe it wasn't as strange as she thought. She had been out of the dating scene for a while now. Maybe they'd been having a meeting or something and it just carried over into when he'd told her to come over.
Bringing the glass to her lips she took a tiny sip and forced a tight lipped smile. "That's good." She lied. She always tried her best to be polite.
"I would hope so. It's a very expensive bottle of scotch." Jim took a large drink of his own glass, clearly savoring it.
She took another small sip and wished that she had asked for something else. Or that she at least had something to chase it with. She didn't mind taking shots when she was out, but she never willingly drank straight alcohol like this.
"I'm going to head out now." A man's voice rang out from behind her and she turned to see who was speaking. She assumed this was the business associate Jim had mentioned. She smiled, her stomach flipping around nervously like a swarm of butterflied had been unleashed. Whoever he was, he was gorgeous. He was tall with dark blonde hair styled back into a style reminiscent of a pompadour, but messier, with short faded sides. He had a scar crossing through his left eyebrow and extending just slightly down his cheek and she couldn't help but imagine how he'd received it.
"I poured a glass of scotch for you if you care to stay for a drink." Jim motioned to the glass of scotch on the glass table in front of them.
"I wouldn't want to interrupt your date." He smiled at Molly. She thought he looked amused as he glanced between her and Jim, but maybe he just found it awkward interrupting their date.
"Then again, you know what I say; There's a special rung in hell reserved for people who waste good scotch." He walked over to take the last glass of scotch and sat next to Molly on the small loveseat. He inhaled a deep whiff of the scotch, closing his eyes as he savored it.
"I'll only stay if it's okay with you."
Molly looked up from studying her feet to see he was staring at her. "Oh, m-me?" She stammered timidly. "I don't mind at all."
"I'm Sebastian." He held his hand out and Molly shook it.
"I'm Molly. Nice to meet you." She was worried she'd be blushing again with the way he was staring at her. His blue eyes were intense, and she was having trouble focusing on anything else.
"The pleasure is all mine. It's not often I get to see Jim on dates." Sebastian settled back comfortably on the sofa he was sharing with Molly. She couldn't help but notice the short, unamused, look Jim shot him. She couldn't tell for sure, but he seemed upset. Then again, he was just as awkward as she was, he was probably just worried Sebastian might embarrass him.
"Well there's nothing wrong with that." Molly felt the need to come to Jim's defense. After all, she didn't go on many dates herself.
"Of course not." Sebastian laughed loudly, "I'm just saying it's a very rare occurrence."
"Drink your scotch and shut up." Jim rolled his eyes. "Ignore him Molly, he's far too uncivilized for normal human beings to put up with."
"So do you two work together?" She hoped the change of subject would help Jim lighten up. He was definitely acting far less sweet in front of Sebastian than he had been on previous dates.
"Sometimes." Jim's answer was short, though he followed it with an apologetic smile aimed at her.
"Oh, don't let him downplay it. We go way back." Sebastian took a large drink of his scotch and grinned. "Are you embarrassed of me?" He teased Jim, a large smile playing across his lips.
"Embarrassed might not be the right word." Jim shot back, locking eyes with Sebastian.
"Well you caught yourself a keeper with this one." Sebastian nudged Molly, "He's just a ball of fun isn't he?"
Molly looked back and forth between the two, not sure what to say. The tension was clear, though she didn't understand why. She assumed Sebastian was just joking around. But clearly, joking around or not, Jim wasn't enjoying it and she felt bad.
"He's sweet?" She offered weakly in Jim's defense. Sebastian's eyes widened and he looked over at Jim before bursting into loud laughter.
"Alright Bastian, I think you've had your fun." Jim pinched the bridge of his nose and sighed. "You're making an ass of yourself."
"It's okay, really. It's nice." Molly took a larger sip of her drink, hoping it would make this interaction a little less awkward the more she drank. "It's nice to see you with a friend, I think that can say a lot about someone."
Both men turned their full attention to her. Jim's eyebrows wrinkled in confusion and Sebastian covered his mouth, hiding the smirk playing at his lips. "All he says about me is that I need to get better friends." Jim countered rather quickly.
"Okay, well in that case. She's your date tonight." Sebastian motioned to Molly, "What does she say about you?"
"That I have good taste." He answered immediately. Molly felt herself warm at his words. Did he really think that about her? She was so used to hearing rude comments about herself from Sherlock Holmes that Jim's words caught her off guard. Not that she held that against the detective, she knew he didn't mean to be rude.
Sometimes she wished she did hold it against him. It'd be better than pining over someone who clearly saw nothing positive about her. Well, nothing positive besides the fact that she let him take body parts to study and allowed him to have full use of her lab. Not that he ever thanked her.
A buzzing noise broke the awkward silence that had formed and Jim cast molly a remorseful look, "Excuse me." He took out his phone and hurried out of the room as he answered it, leaving Molly alone with Sebastian.
"Sorry for crashing your date." Sebastian apologized to her once they were alone. "I promise I'll excuse myself when he comes back so you two lovebirds can be alone." He shot back the last of his scotch and set the empty glass on the table.
"It's really okay." Molly played with the hemline of her skirt. "We're hardly lovebirds. This is only our third date."
"And what's your consensus on him?"
"He's nice." She noticed the way he smirked and tried to hide it again and she struggled to fight off being annoyed.
"I'm sure he is." It didn't escape her notice how disingenuous he sounded, but Jim came back before she could ask him about it.
"I'm so sorry Molly, I just got an emergency call from one of my clients. They had a complete server meltdown and I need to head over there right now. Can we reschedule?"
"Oh… of course." Molly set down her glass of scotch and stood up. "That's perfectly fine, I understand."
"Anything I need to help with?" Sebastian sounded serious for the first time this whole evening. His whole posture shifted as he waited for Jim's response.
"No, that's not necessary. But would you mind taking Molly home for me? Make sure she gets there safely."
Sebastian nodded obediently and Molly shook her head in protest. "I don't need him to take me home, I can call a cab." She didn't understand these two at all. One minute Sebastian is driving him crazy and teasing him and the next he's all business and willing to do whatever Jim asks him. To say they had an odd dynamic seemed like an understatement.
Jim walked over to Molly, taking her hands in his own. "It's not a problem, I'd prefer it if he took you home. Can we get dinner tomorrow night?"
"Sure, that sounds great."
"The fox? Sixish?"
Molly nodded again and Jim squeezed her hands before letting go. "Text me when you get home so I know you got there safely. I've got to go. Sebastian lock up when you two leave."
"Bye." Molly called after him quietly. She knew it would have been awkward if he kissed her in front of Sebastian but she couldn't help but wonder why he didn't even try to kiss her goodbye. It was probably just her third date paranoia kicking in, but she still felt disappointed.
"You really don't need to take me home." She turned her attention back to Sebastian. "It's totally unnecessary, I can get myself home."
"It's late. It's not safe for you to go out by yourself. You never know what could happen." His tone made it clear he wasn't going to budge. "Plus, I don't mind. Are you finished with your scotch?" he nodded towards her still half full glass on the table.
"What? Oh, yeah." She nodded once she caught up to his train of thought. Sebastian downed it in one shot and brought the glasses back to the bar. "Want me to call a cab?"
He shook his head, "Nah, not necessary. I'm sure we can just flag one down. Are you ready to go then?"
"Yes? I mean, we should. Shouldn't we?"
"Sure." He responded with a nonchalant shrug of his shoulders. "Come on."
Molly followed him out of Jim's apartment, putting on her coat once they got outside. The two walked in silence until they reached the corner of the block. "Can I ask you something?" Molly was first to break the silence once she mustered the courage to ask him her question.
"Sure."
"What did you mean when you said you're sure Jim's a nice guy?"
"I meant that I'm sure he's a nice guy. There was no secret meaning." Sebastian smiled as he glanced over at her.
"I don't believe you. You didn't sound like you meant it."
"I was just joking around. I'm sure he's great. He probably shows you a totally different side than I see anyways." Sebastian brushed her concerns off and focused on waving down an oncoming taxi.
"So you meant nothing by it?"
"Nothing at all love, sorry." He opened the door to the taxi and let her slide in first. Molly gave the driver her address and settled back into the seat. With both of them crammed in the backseat of the taxi she was acutely aware of how close they were. She snuck a glance at him, smiling awkwardly as he caught her looking. Studying her feet, she tried to quench the guilt twisting in her gut. She knew she shouldn't be checking out Jim's friend.
Even if they weren't exclusive or aything, it was still wrong. She wouldn't appreciate it if Jim was checking out one of her friends. But she just couldn't help it. Sebastian was attractive, exceptionally so at that. And as sweet as Jim was she just didn't find herself overwhelmingly attracted to him. Not in a physical sense at least. His personality was so kind and he seemed so caring. But if she was being honest, he was almost too safe.
Everything about him was gentle, and almost… boring. Nothing about Sebastian seemed boring. From the way he'd been teasing Jim tonight, to the loud laughter that lit up his whole face, he seemed fun. And he certainly didn't seem safe. If anything he seemed… dangerous. The word popped into her head, an unwelcome addition to her thoughts.
"So, what do you and Jim do on your dates? I'm curious." Sebastian broke the heavy silence that had settled between them. "I just can't picture him on a date."
"He really doesn't ever go on dates?"
"Not often, no."
"I don't know. Normal stuff I guess. We got coffee the first time, and the second time we got dinner and then went to my flat and watched some television." Molly was trying very hard to seem like she was experienced with dating. He didn't need to know that she had no idea what normal stuff even entailed anymore. She doubted things had changed much anyways, it hadn't been that long since she'd been in a relationship. It had only been a few years.
"He came over to your flat huh?" The insinuation was clear in both the tone of his voice, and the way the corners of his mouth ticked up in playful amusement.
"We didn't have sex." Molly snapped, her face getting warm. "It was only the second date."
"I've had sex with girls after two hours, let alone two dates." His comment had the desired effect on Molly. She opened her mouth to say something and shut it again immediately. She knew her face was probably scarlet and her hands were fidgeting in her lap, playing with the skirt of her dress again.
"Well, there's nothing wrong with that. But I don't do that." She finally gathered herself enough to respond. Sebastian cocked an eyebrow at her and smiled. He hadn't been expecting that answer from her. He'd pegged her as the puritanical, judgmental sort. "Well, there's nothing wrong with that either." Sebastian chuckled and met her eyes, holding her gaze a moment longer than what seemed normal. "I just wanted to see you blush."
Molly found herself at a loss of words as she met his eyes. Was he flirting with her? Or maybe he was just moving on to teasing her now that Jim wasn't here to be his target. She let out a deep breath of relief when she saw the taxi was pulling onto her street. "Do I make you nervous?" his eyes lit up at the idea.
"A little bit." She answered honestly, not breaking eye contact with him. The small bit of space between them seemed heavy and uncomfortable, the sudden silence not helping matters. "Oh look at that. This is my apartment. Thanks for seeing me home, it was sweet of you." The words rushed out in a jumble.
She reached into her purse to get her wallet and one of Sebastian's hands settled over her own to stop her. He handed money to the driver, telling him to keep the tip. "You don't have to do that. I can pay for my own taxi."
"I'm nothing if not a gentleman." Sebastian answered, leaning over her and pushing the door open. Molly held her breath as their faces were uncomfortably close. She hurried to slide out of the taxi, taking a quick deep breath to compose herself. "You don't need to walk me to my apartment door. I think I can manage." She spoke quickly, surprised to see him climbing out of the taxi as well.
"I'm quite sure you could."
"Look, I appreciate you taking me home and paying for the taxi, it really was nice. But I have it from here."
"Are you afraid of me seeing where you live?" Honestly, she wasn't sure if he was being serious or not. "Do you think I'm dangerous?"
There was that word again. He certainly gave off that vibe. But she wasn't worried he'd hurt her or anything. If anything he seemed more dangerous in the sense that he knew he was gorgeous and she could tell he knew how to work that to his advantage.
"No. That's not it. It's just… you've done enough. You really don't have to."
He held his hands up in defeat. "Fair enough, I don't want to make you uncomfortable." He ran a hand through his hair, and smiled.
Molly bit her lip, fighting the urge to just let him walk her up to her apartment. Truthfully she wouldn't even mind inviting him up for a quick drink. But she knew that would be inappropriate. Their conversation had already tiptoed the line of what was appropriate as it is.
Sebastian hid his amusement as she struggled over what to say. He knew Jim would expect him to see her all the way to her apartment door. And then he'd be expected to report to him that she was safely there. He had to make sure his toy was okay until he was done with her after all.
He found that the thought bothered him, but he pushed it away. That's what Jim did. He never let it bother him before, and he wasn't about to let it bother him now.
It didn't matter anyways. Once he cast her aside she'd move on just fine. She didn't seem that interested in Jim anyways. He'd just lie and say he walked her to her door. He wasn't going to keep pressing the poor girl until she felt uncomfortable.
"Do you live far from here?" The question caught him off guard and he was sure his expression showed it.
"Not too far, why?"
"It's just really cold out. Do you want to come in for a cup of tea or something?" Molly tried her best to sound confident as she invited him up. All of her magazines said confidence was a woman's most important asset.
He hesitated, weighing the options. If he accepted he knew it was liable to bring the wrath of his boss down on him. And that wasn't something he felt like risking. "I'm okay." He replied, "I can't put you out at my expense. I'll catch a cab and be home in no time. Thank you though."
"You're welcome." Molly bit back disappointment, and reminded herself it was for the best. "Thanks again for taking me home."
"My pleasure, it was nice meeting you."
"Nice meeting you too." Molly dug the key to her apartment building out of her purse. She waved to him and he returned her wave with a friendly smile before waving down a new taxi. Molly pushed any thoughts of him away once she got into her flat.
It was good he hadn't taken her up on her offer. It was beyond stupid of her to even suggest he come up to her flat. Jim didn't deserve that. Even if she had meant it with innocent intentions. Jim had been nothing short of sweet to her since they'd met. He was the first guy to even notice her in a long time. It'd been so thoughtful of him to make sure she got home safe, and she would have felt guilty if she'd taken advantage of that.
Despite her hesitations, Jim was a good guy and seemed truly interested in her. It was only fair to give him a fair chance. Which meant she needed to stop pining over Sherlock Holmes, and she definitely needed to stop flirting with his friend. She had a feeling she wouldn't have to see Sebastian again anyways. After all, Jim had never mentioned him before tonight, so how close could they really be?